Comparative study of high temperature anti-oxidation property of sputtering deposited stoichiometric and Si-rich SiC films

Stoichiometric and silicon-rich (Si-rich) SiC films were deposited by microwave electron cyclotron resonance (MW-ECR) plasma enhanced RF magnetron sputtering method. As-deposited films were oxidized at 800 ℃, 900 ℃, and 1000 ℃ in air for 60 min. The chemical composition and structure of the films were analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The surface morphology of the films before and after the high temperature oxidation was measured by atomic force microscopy. The mechanical property of the films was measured by a nano-indenter. The anti-oxidation temperature of the Si-rich SiC film is 100 ℃ higher than that of the stoichiometric SiC film. The oxidation layer thickness of the Si-rich SiC film is thinner than that of the stoichiometric SiC film in depth direction. The large amount of extra silicon in the Si-rich SiC film plays an important role in the improvement of its high temperature anti-oxidation property.